What is permanent disability, and how much is my injury worth?
Your shoulder healed as much as it's going to, and it still won't reach the top shelf. That leftover damage has a number attached to it in California, and the number decides what you're paid.
Questions about your case? Call (323) 656-9040.
Permanent disability, or PD, pays you for the damage that doesn't go away. Once your doctor says you've stopped improving, your limits get turned into a percentage rating, and that rating decides how many weeks you're paid. The weekly amount is two-thirds of your average weekly wage, within state limits. You can be owed PD even if you're back at work.
The short version
- The rating starts with a doctor's impairment number, then gets adjusted for your date of injury, age and job.
- Injuries in 2013 or later get a 1.4 adjustment factor.
- For injuries in 2014 or later, the weekly check works out to roughly $160 to $290 (our math from Labor Code 4453 and 4658).
- A rating of 70% or more adds a small life pension. 100% is paid for life.
When PD kicks in
Not while you're still getting better. PD starts to matter when your treating doctor says you're "permanent and stationary," also called maximum medical improvement. Translation: you've improved as much as treatment is going to get you. The doctor then writes a report spelling out what's permanently wrong and what you can't do anymore. Everything about your PD flows from that report.
A lot of people assume PD is only for people who lost their job. It isn't. The state's own guidebook puts it bluntly: "You don't have to lose your job to be eligible for PD benefits." The one catch is timing. If your employer offers you work paying at least 85 percent of what you made, or you're back at full pay, the insurer can hold off on PD payments until there's an award (Labor Code section 4650(b)(2)). The money is still owed. It just comes later.
Sources: DWC Injured Worker Guidebook, Chapter 7; Labor Code § 4650(b)(2).
What goes into the number
Your rating is a percentage from 0 to 100, and it isn't simply the doctor's opinion of how bad things are. It's built. The doctor measures your loss of function under the AMA Guides, using California's 2005 rating schedule. If you were hurt in 2013 or later, that impairment gets multiplied by 1.4. Then it's adjusted for your occupation, because a bad shoulder costs a roofer more than it costs a receptionist, and for your age on the date of injury.
Last comes apportionment. If part of your disability is from something other than this work injury, like an old injury or a condition you already had, that part can be carved out.
Here's why this matters: a few words in a medical report can move a rating by several points, and every point is money. If you think the treating doctor got it wrong, you can be evaluated by a Qualified Medical Evaluator. Our QME guide explains how that works and why the deadlines are so short.
Source: DWC Injured Worker Guidebook, Chapter 7.
The money
PD is paid weekly at two-thirds of your average weekly wage, but the law boxes that wage in. For injuries in 2014 or later it's set between $240 and $435, which puts the weekly check at about $160 to $290. That range is our own calculation from Labor Code sections 4453 and 4658, not a figure the state publishes. The rating decides how many weeks you get.
| Item | What the law says |
|---|---|
| Weekly rate | Two-thirds of average weekly wage, within limits |
| Weekly range, injuries 2014 or later | About $160 to $290 (derived from Labor Code §§ 4453, 4658) |
| Adjustment factor, injuries 2013 or later | 1.4 |
| Life pension | Ratings of 70% up to (not including) 100% |
| Total permanent disability | 100% rating, paid for life |
At 70 percent or higher (but under 100), a small life pension kicks in after the regular PD payments end. At 100 percent you're totally disabled in the law's eyes, and PD is paid for the rest of your life.
Sources: Labor Code § 4658; § 4453; § 4659.
Call (323) 656-9040 or send us the short form to discuss what happened.
What else comes with a permanent injury
Hurt in 2013 or later, left with a permanent disability, and your employer doesn't offer you regular, modified or alternative work lasting at least 12 months within 60 days of the final medical report? Then you get a Supplemental Job Displacement Benefit voucher worth up to $6,000 for retraining. Get that voucher and you can also apply for a one-time $5,000 Return-to-Work Supplement from the state, as long as you apply within a year. The returning to work guide has the details.
Medical care for the injury can also keep going after you're permanent and stationary. How it continues depends on how your case ends, which makes it one of the biggest decisions in any settlement. More in the medical treatment guide.
Sources: Labor Code § 4658.7; DIR Return-to-Work Supplement Program.
The deadlines
You have one year to file with the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board, counted from the latest of three dates: the injury, your last disability check, or your last medical benefit. If things get worse later, you may be able to claim "new and further disability" within five years of the injury. For injuries that built up over time, the date of injury is when you were first disabled by it and knew, or should have known, your work caused it.
Sources: Labor Code § 5405; § 5410; § 5412.
Before you sign anything
Get a copy of your doctor's permanent and stationary report and read the work restrictions line by line. If something you can't do anymore isn't on there, it isn't being paid for. Watch your mail for anything about a QME panel, because those deadlines run in days, not months. If your employer says there's no work for you, get that in writing; it decides whether you get the retraining voucher. And don't sign a settlement or anything that closes your claim until someone has checked the rating. A second look costs you nothing. Our consultation is free.
Two questions we get a lot
Can I get paid for pain and suffering?
Not through workers' comp. The state is clear that workers' comp doesn't include damages for pain and suffering. If someone other than your employer caused the injury, like another driver, that's a separate claim. Our page on car accidents at work explains how those two claims fit together.
How much does a lawyer take on a PD case?
A judge has to approve the fee. The state says it's typically 9 to 15 percent of your final permanent disability settlement or award, and nothing up front.
Sources: DWC, Information for injured workers; DWC Guidebook, Chapter 11.
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